Spin is a Beautiful (and Lasting) Thing

22052009

So there you have it. In his testimonybefore the Joint Congressional Committee on the Conduct of the War, Irvin McDowell laid the failure at Bull Run squarely on the shoulders of Winfield Scott and Robert Patterson for their inability to hold the force of Joe Johnston in the Valley. And he made a convincing case, one that has held up to the present day. McDowell asserted that he was assurred by Scott that Johnston’s force would not join with Beauregard; McDowell planned accordingly; and his plans were only foiled by the arrival of Johnston’s men on the plains of Manassas, or rather the failure of Scott to live up to his part of the bargain.

On the surface, it seems to make sense. That is what happened. Beauregard would have been very hard pressed to defeat McDowell without the help of the Army of the Shenandoah. But look at what McDowell was saying – his plans were fine. He outlined the plan in his testimony, but he didn’t delve into one specific: how many of the enemy did he anticipate he would face? If we work backwards, and say he actually faced 35,000 (a round estimate), and Johnston added 8,000 to 12,000, then Beauregard without Johnston was 23,000 to 27,000. So if McDowell anticipated facing 27,000 or so, his argument holds water. But as noted in his plan, McDowell estimated the Confederate strength would equal (after reinforcements from all available quarters except those occupied by Patterson and by Butler at Fortress Monroe) about 35,000, or about the number with which he in fact did have to contend.

For me, the argument that Johnston’s arrival won the battle is sound, but the conclusion that it was all that upset McDowell’s plans does not pass the smell test. It’s spin, double-talk, newspeak, whatever you want to call it. And it’s firmly entrenched.

[…] Military Strategy at the Battle of Bull Run 28 07 2010 Donald Stoker, whose new book on strategy in the Civil War was the subject of this post, sent me a link to his summary of military strategy at the battle of Bull Run. Check it out, see what you think. As usual, I can quibble a bit. For an expansion on Lincoln’s motivations for sending McDowell forth, see here. For a look at how – or if – Patterson’s failure foiled the Federal plan for the movement, see here. […]

Dulce bellum inexpertis

“I am sending you these little incidents as I hear them well authenticated. They form, to the friends of the parties, part of the history of the glorious 21st. More anon.”

About

Hello! I’m Harry Smeltzer and welcome to Bull Runnings, where you'll find my digital history project on the First Battle of Bull Run which is organized under the Bull Run Resources section. I'll also post my thoughts on the processes behind the project and commentary on the campaign, but pretty much all things Civil War are fair game. You'll only find musings on my “real job” or my personal life when they relate to this project. My mother always told me "never discuss politics or religion in mixed company”, and that's sound advice where current events are concerned.

The Project

This site is more than a blog. Bull Runnings also hosts digitized material pertaining to First Bull Run. In the Bull Run Resources link in the masthead and also listed below are links to Orders of Battle, After Action Reports, Official Correspondence, Biographical Sketches, Diaries, Letters, Memoirs, Newspaper Accounts and much, much more. Take some time to surf through the material. This is a work in process with no end in sight, so check back often!